Proud Supporter of the Arts
by thinktink2
Summary: What happens when your live-in love volunteers you for something. More fun in the "Coming to Terms/Accepting the Consequences" world. Takes place sometime after "Consequences" ends. One-shot


AN: My goodness there was lots to talk about in that mid-season premiere. Eve, Nick and Adalind (squee!), and did any one catch the Meisner dreaming of Adalind sequence. My, my, that's going to be one heck of a triangle/quadrangle. Many things to chew on. Should inspire a fanfic somewhere.

Meanwhile, I only have this to offer you. As you know, I love it when Adalind drags Nick into something.

%%%%%%

He was going to kill her.

They had lived in relative harmony for over a year and a half now, but she had finally brought all that to an abrupt end.

"Adalind? Adalind, pick up your phone." He said when the tone chimed. He stabbed the end call button viciously on his screen, far less satisfying then slamming or flipping the phone shut. He sighed loudly and stuffed the phone back in his coat pocket, glancing at Hank darkly when he realized Hank was looking at him.

"Trouble in paradise?" Hank asked, a hint of amusement on his lips as he drove across town to the crime scene they had been called to.

They didn't talk much about his relationship with Adalind. There were the obvious factors: Hank had slept with Adalind, and she had tried to kill him. Twice. Sort of put the kibosh on any sort of sympathy Nick might be hoping to elicit if he did share something with Hank. She had tried to kill several people close to him, had been instrumental in the destruction of his relationship with Juliette, and had borne him a son as a result of part of that. Hank didn't begrudge Nick for taking responsibility for his shift in priorities, and his sudden family, he just didn't really understand how that led to his present day predicament: that he was in love with that woman and still living with her, raising their child together.

Most of his friends didn't understand. Sometimes Nick didn't either.

Nick debated on answering, wondering how much he should get into it. How much Hank wanted to hear.

"Adalind volunteered me to some charity fundraiser thing I had already told her I had no interest in participating in. The lady running it called me this morning. Which is when I found out she had volunteered me."

"What's the fundraiser?"

Nick flushed a little, looking at the window. He was regretting getting into it.

"Portland's Hottest Civil Servant."

"What charity is that?"

"Portland's arts council."

"Oh-kay," Hank said. "Well just tell the woman there was some mistake. Not like you know her."

Nick was quiet for a moment.

"You do know her," Hank said.

"She's this physician's wife we met when we went for that interview at Kelly's daycare."

"The three-hour interview for an infant you came back in a suit for?"

"Yes," Nick said sourly, still bitter over the whole thing. Although getting Kelly into that place wound up being fortuitous. The high level of security had undoubtedly protected him from harm when Louis Parker, a Wesen lawyer at Adalind's firm, had planned to kidnap him to further the uprising's cause. He had never even gotten close, and the Wesen employees, aware that Kelly was the son to a Grimm, had not been about to risk Nick's ire and let anything happen to him. "Valencia Stewardson," Nick said, and Hank gave him a look.

"Valencia?" Nick returned the look and nodded. He looked up when he saw flashing lights come into view. He picked out Wu and a couple of CSU guys.

"So what's the big deal?" Hank asked, putting the car in park and following Nick to the group of officers clustered near the body. "You go, you have a few drinks, and you raise some money for a decent cause."

"Drinks? Did somebody say drinks? I could go for some drinks," Wu said, breaking away from what he was doing to follow Nick and Hank.

"Yeah, Nick is participating in some charity thing for the Portland Arts Council," Hank said, ignoring Nick's head shakes to drop the matter.

"Oh, the Portland Hottest Civil Servant event? Did Adalind ask you too? Well, you've got some stiff competition my friend. You're looking at the future winner." Wu announced proudly, and both Nick and Hank dragged their eyes from the body they were examining to stare dumbfounded at Wu.

"You?" Nick said, before he could stop himself. Hank glanced at him, frown playing on his lips.

"Adalind asked you?" Hank said.

"Yeah, she called and asked me the other day. I think she's on the planning and recruitment committee?" Nick raised his eyebrows in surprise.

"There's a committee for this?" he said incredulously.

"She didn't ask me," Hank said, a small note of insult in his voice.

"Yeah, this is a huge event in Portland. Last year they raised over a hundred thousand dollars. She asked the Captain, too, I think," Wu continued, and Nick narrowed his eyes slightly. The captain?

"You were on that hotel robbery when she called," Wu told Hank.

"Well, she didn't ask me," Nick retorted, "so you might just check that you haven't already been signed up. What've we got?" he asked Wu, trying to get off the subject and back to the task at hand. He knelt down to inspect the body closer, and Wu rattled off the details he had.

"Victim is a 25 year-old graduate student. Told his roommate he was going out for a drive, never came back. Was reported missing five days ago, and was discovered here by a lady walking her dog. Dog got loose, found the body. Lady found the dog," Wu pointed to the woman in question, and Nick spied an overweight golden retriever standing beside her.

"Oswald getting her statement?" Nick asked, noting the officer.

"Yup."

"What all does the event involve?" Hank asked Wu, and Nick stood suddenly and pinched the bridge of his nose.

"The charity event?"

Hank nodded.

"Not a whole lot. You dress up, show up, they say some nice things about you, and the women bid on who they like best. The top twelve candidates are featured in a calendar, and all the proceeds from that and the event go to support the arts council. Adalind said they try to get candidates from all different occupations."

"Can we just focus on the body?" Nick interrupted loudly.

Hank and Wu looked at him.

"Well somebody's in a mood," Wu said, and Nick glared.

"Condition of the body would indicate time of death is less than the five days he was missing," Nick pointed out and Wu and Hank focused back on work.

"Any sign of the car he was driving?" Hank asked, and Wu shook his head.

"No sign of the car, and no ID. Victim was identified from the missing person's database."

"You got to fill out a form or anything?" Hank said, returning his attention to Wu, and Nick groaned loudly and stalked off towards the woman.

"There's an entry form, and a questionnaire," he heard Wu say, and was glad to be finally out of earshot when he was about two thirds away from his destination.

He was going to kill her.

%%%%%%%

He looked at his phone buzzing loudly and twisted his lips in annoyance when he saw who it was.

"You've got a lot of nerve," he said when he picked up.

"Nick?"

"Just what do you think you're doing?"

"You called?"

"You know what I'm talking about Adalind."

"I've been in meetings all day. What's up?"

"The charity thing? That I told you I had no interest in?" He reminded her loudly, and glared at Hank and Wu when they looked at him.

"Ohhhh, that."

"Yes, that. There is no way in hell I'm participating in that thing, Adalind."

"Did Valencia call you?" she asked.

"Yes, Valencia called me!"

"Hmm, I asked her not to do that," she said, sounding slightly perturbed, and Nick huffed loudly and moved a few paces away.

"You asked Wu and the Captain too?" he said.

"Yes, well, it wouldn't look fair and unbiased if I only asked you."

"You didn't ask me at all! You just signed me up!"

"Because when I told you about it you said no."

"That should have been you're first clue that I want no part in this."

"What are you so worried about. It's for a great cause, and it's a lot of fun, and you'll be surrounded by your friends, so what's the big deal. Say, hey, would you ask Hank if wants to participate? I thought about asking him, but he wasn't there when I called, and then I thought it might be weird given our history."

Nick pulled the phone away from his ear and stared at it.

"Are you kidding me!" he said when he brought it back up to his ear. Hank made a motion that they were getting ready to leave and Nick nodded and watched him head to the car, before he followed.

"No, I can email him the forms," she said, quite seriously, and Nick began to wonder if she was just yanking his chain. He sighed loudly into the phone.

"Adalind," he said tiredly.

"I think you'll be great. All you have to do is stand up on the stage and smile."

"I'm not wearing a suit again," he retorted, and then closed his eyes, because had he just agreed to this by making that statement?

"Of course not," she agreed. "Wear whatever you like. I think Wu's going to wear his policeman's uniform," she added. "I think you should wear whatever you usually wear. Wear the badge and the gun," she added wickedly, "it makes me want to do all sorts of naughty things to you."

Nick looked up at the sky for guidance. "I'm hanging up now," he said, and clicked off when he heard her amused "love you," in reply.

"Everything okay?" Hank asked, as Nick got in with a loud sigh.

"Adalind said she'll email you the forms."

%%%%%%%

"Hey, what did you put down for question eight?" Hank asked, and Nick looked up from the report he was writing to stare at his partner in confusion.

"Question eight?" he echoed. "On what?"

"The questionnaire Adalind sent for the charity thing."

Nick rolled his chair around so he could look at Hank's computer screen.

"Describe your perfect date with your perfect mate?" he read aloud.

"I mean; do you think a late night picnic on the beach would be too trite?" Hank asked seriously, and Nick frowned. "What did you put?"

"I didn't put anything. I didn't fill one of these out," Nick said, and then wondered who did in his place. Adalind, of course. He glanced through the rest of the questions and felt a pit forming in his stomach. He colored a little when he read a couple of them.

"Some of these are a little personal don't you think?" he said, and then wondered what Adalind had responded when she had come across them. Hank shrugged.

"6'3?" he scoffed, when his eyes fell on some of Hank's entries.

Hank sat up in his chair and tried to turn the screen back. Nick placed a hand on the monitor to keep it in place as he kept reading. "Dude, you are like an inch taller than me," he said, "and I'm barely six feet."

"You're up on a stage. Not like anybody's going to be able to tell," Hank replied, batting Nick's arm away. "Women like a tall man," Hank added, and Nick rolled his eyes.

"What are you guys looking at," Wu said, dropping a folder of crime scene photos on Hank's desk.

"Hank's work of fiction," Nick replied.

"6'3?" Wu asked humorously, when he leaned down to see what Nick was referring to, and Hank gave him a look. "Hey, no judgment here. You're up on a stage, not like anybody can tell."

Nick and Hank both looked at him. "What did you put down?" Nick asked suspiciously.

"5'10" Wu replied. Hank looked him up and down, and Nick bit down a smile. "What? Women like a tall man," Wu retorted. "What did you put down?"

"Nothing. I didn't fill one out," Nick said.

"Oh, that should be interesting," Wu remarked. "I can't wait to read what Adalind wrote about you," he said, striding away. Nick watched him go, wondering worriedly that himself. He looked back at Hank who smiled.

"I'm sure it's not all bad," he said, and went back to his questionnaire.

That's what Nick was afraid of.

%%%%%%%%%

"Dada!" Nick glanced up from the report he was still trying to finish, with little significant input from Hank, he might add, when he heard his son's voice. He threw his pen on his desk, and leaned back in his chair as his son toddled around the perimeter of the cluster of desks and came into view. He was still several inches shorter than the nearest surface, and could easily fit in the alcove where the chair usually rested.

"Hey buddy," Nick said holding out his arms and Kelly returned the gesture. Nick picked him up and set him on his lap, leaning back in his chair again, his son falling against his chest. He looked up at the source of his aggravation all day long and met Adalind's eyes. She was dressed in an expensive looking suit, a beautiful, colorful, expensive looking scarf, her hair loose and straight falling across her shoulders. Her designer four-inch heels clicked on the linoleum floor as she followed Kelly around the desks, and she stood and leaned against the drawers on Nick's left side, looking at Nick holding their son.

"Hey," she said smiling. She set her briefcase on Nick's desk, an expensive looking piece of mahogany Italian leather.

"Hello," Nick returned coolly.

"How was your day?" Adalind ventured, and Nick rolled his head back to her with a look.

"You know how it was," he replied darkly. She rolled her eyes and Nick turned his attention back to Kelly, who was trying to escape his father's grasp and work his way further into the station. He protested loudly and then plopped down on the floor to bawl.

"I see you're in a good mood, too," Nick noted as Adalind moved around him to pick up Kelly.

"He takes after his dad," Adalind retorted.

"Why? Did mommy sign you up for something you specifically told her not to also?" he asked his son.

"You never specifically told me not to," Adalind said, and Nick looked at her disbelief.

"I distinctly remember telling you I wasn't interested when you said Valencia had invited you to participate on an event with her organization."

"Yes, you did," Adalind agreed, "That could have meant any number of things. But never did the words, "Do not sign me up as a participant in this charity function" ever pass through your lips," she replied and Nick's brows sunk down into the corners of his eyes incredulously.

"Seriously. You're going to lawyer me on this?"

"I'm just saying," Adalind replied finally getting Kelly to calm down as he became interested in the objects on Nick's desk. Nick moved the report and pen he had been working on out of reach, and Kelly screeched loudly in response.

Adalind and Nick both winced, and Adalind produced his toy police car from somewhere and offered it to him.

Kelly shook it up and down and then threw it across the room. Nick watched it land over near the copier and then got up from his chair with a sigh.

"Adalind," he heard Renard say, and he glanced back to see his captain pause at his desk where Adalind was leaning against, and Adalind offer a small, polite smile.

"Sean," she said, returning her gaze to what Kelly was trying to do, which was get a hold of Nick's stapler. She shifted him on her hip, away from the desk and temptation and Nick fished out Kelly's car from where it had skidded underneath a cabinet. He dusted it off on his pants before offering it back to his son. Adalind snatched it before he could with a sharp look at Nick and produced a baby wipe and wiped it down. She handed it back to Nick who obliged by drying it off with his shirt and giving it back to Kelly.

Adalind, Kelly, Nick and Renard watched him launch it through the room, this time across Gibson and Pike's desks where it bounced and landed. Nick sighed again and he heard Renard snort and he smiled apologetically at Gibson and retrieved the toy once again. When he returned Renard was saying something to Adalind about the charity thing.

"It won't be that bad, honestly," Adalind replied, looking at Nick.

"Did she sign you up, too?" Nick asked. The captain looked at him.

"I know several of the directors on the arts council. Mayor feels it will be good press for the upcoming election."

"Like I told Nick, all you have to do is stand up there and smile."

"You're doing this?" the captain asked in surprise.

"Not voluntarily," Nick answered, and Renard glanced between Nick and Adalind, that perceptive look making Nick slightly on edge again. Why, he didn't know, but he got the feeling sometimes Renard still harbored some feelings towards Adalind. He was definitely curious about the relationship Nick and Adalind had. They hadn't been together in years, since before Diana was born, but every now and then Renard's glance lingered on her too long and Nick wondered what he was thinking about. Adalind never really paid him much attention now, most of the interactions on her side distant and polite. She was still resentful of the role Renard had to play in separating her from Diana, Nick thought too. Thought maybe she thought Renard should have been more like Nick and kept his family close and protected.

Sometimes Nick couldn't help but think Renard had been the smarter one, given the amount of worry and time he spent thinking and planning on how to keep Adalind and Kelly safe. And to what effect?

"Adalind, hey," Hank said, returning.

"Hey, Hank," and that was more animation and warmth between them than Nick had witnessed before she had tried to kill him the first time.

"I've got the forms you sent all filled out and ready to go," Hank told her, handing her the documents.

"Excellent," Adalind said, handing Nick his son. She flashed a smile at his partner and thumbed through them quickly, before looking up and saying, "I'll give these to Valencia tomorrow." Hank nodded.

"Kelly! My man!" Hank said, noticing Kelly, and Kelly smiled widely, pacifier in his mouth from where Nick had fished it out from one of his baby bag's pockets, and leaned over Nick's arms to hold out his to Hank. Hank picked him up and Nick tossed his police car on his desk.

"About those forms," Nick said to Adalind and she glanced at him and then quickly looked away to stuff Hank's in her briefcase.

"I took care of them, don't worry," she said dismissively.

"I know, that's what scares me," Nick replied.

Renard looked him. "She filled out your forms," he asked glancing at Adalind who gave him a dirty look.

"Apparently."

"Have you seen some of the questions on there?" Renard asked.

"Yes," Nick replied, darting his eyes at Renard and then Adalind.

"Then you should be doubly worried," Renard said and moved off into his office. Adalind made a face at his retreating back and Nick turned to her.

"I would like to review those forms, if you don't mind."

"I already turned them in," Adalind said. "What?" she said at Nick's look of alarm. "It's just basic stuff, height, weight, hair color, I mean, I think I can work those out on my own. Saves you some paperwork," she added indicating his desk.

"What about the questions on the questionnaire?" he said, thinking of number 8, and then numbers 14 and 15.

"Oh. That." Adalind replied looking around their workstation, and Nick recognized the look as one where she was trying to find a distraction or new topic to sway him on.

"Yes, that," he said, and Hank glanced between them.

"Just…go with it," she said turning back to him.

"Go with it?" he said.

"I may have taken a few liberties," she admitted, and that did nothing to quell his anxiety.

"With what? Who reads this?"

"Just the people on the committee," Adalind assured, and that didn't do anything to make him feel better either. Who was on the committee? Valencia, and that was bad enough to think about. Adalind. Who else?

"What did you put down?" he asked again, and ignored the smirk forming on Hank's face at their exchange.

"Nothing you have to worry much about," she said.

"Much?!"

"It'll be fine. No one hardly ever reads those things anyway. Work been busy today?" she asked trying to change the subject. She looked at Hank for help.

"Just the usual. Missing person turned up dead," Hank obliged, making faces at Kelly. Kelly grinned and then squirmed, indicating he wanted down. Hank set him on his feet after a series of complicated maneuvers by his son that had Hank fumbling to hang on.

"Sounds exciting," Adalind replied. "Kelly don't touch that."

Nick smiled at the squawk of reply. He moved over to his son, deciding if he wasn't going to be able to prevent his destroying everything in the department he could get his hands on, at least maybe he could guide him to take an interest in the unimportant stuff. They spent the next ten minutes together, investigating the big and the small (and inexpensive to replace) of the precinct, resulting in a much better humor for both father and son. When they meandered back, Adalind was on her cell phone, a small, thick, bound notebook he recognized as a day planner she carried with her open on his desk as she scribbled some notes furiously into it, as well as what appeared to be some of her legal documents.

"Make yourself at home," Nick said, and received a sharp look and a "Shhh!" in reply. "Fine," Nick muttered. " _Mi desk es su Desk_."

She spent another twenty minutes on the phone and by the time she had hung up, Nick and Kelly had moved on to rocking back unexpectedly in Hank's chair, and were making quite a big production out of it.

"Ready?" Nick asked his son, and Kelly began to laugh and squeal as Nick slowly tilted back and then pushed hard with his legs, the seat back suddenly tilting at a 45-degree angle, causing Kelly to rock forward into Nick, who caught and steadied him. He couldn't help the grin as he looked at his son's delight and then noticed Adalind watching them both with a contented smile. He looked away, a bit self-conscious, and reminded himself there were other officers trying to work. Still he allowed one more when Kelly shouted his baby speak for "Again!"

"Having fun?" Adalind asked, amused and Nick shrugged, grinning.

"Hoping maybe I'll break Hank's chair. Serve him right for all the help he gave me on our case report." Nick said, and Adalind just shook her head, chin propped up on her hand as she watched Nick play with his son.

"How long is this thing going to last?" Nick asked.

"The charity thing?" Adalind asked, and Nick nodded. "Just a couple of hours."

"So like a half day then?"

"No," she said in an annoyed tone.

"Yes. Every time you tell me something is going to take X amount of time, it usually takes twice that."

"Seriously, are you ever going to let the daycare interview go? Look how well your son is doing? Look how well-protected he was with that thing with Louis? I don't hear a thank you," she said.

"Hmph," Nick replied. "If it wasn't for that interview we would have never met Valencia and this wouldn't even be an issue."

"Yes, well," Adalind said, "We're not going to let that sway us from the facts, and the fact is your son has benefitted greatly from that daycare."

%%%%%%%%

"What do you think?"

"About what?"

"This suit with this shirt. You think a tie?"

Nick looked up where he was trying to scribble some notes on his black notepad with an annoyed frown. They were in downtown Portland investigating a series of robberies, the most recent one involving a menswear shop.

Well, at least one of them was investigating the robberies, Nick thought, the other was apparently investigating his wardrobe choices for the blasted charity fundraiser that was looming large in upcoming days.

"That shade of green? Really?" Nick said, mostly to be spiteful, and Hank gave him a dirty look when he realized what Nick was up to. "Can we focus on this right here?" Nick said.

"Fine," Hank replied.

Nick rolled his head around his shoulders when Wu appeared a few minutes later with a sport jacket. "Hey guys what do you think?"

"I thought you were wearing your uniform?" Hank said, and Nick muttered an expletive under his breath.

"Yeah, I know, I just thought, maybe— "

Hank produced the suit and shirt again for Wu's consideration. "Nice!" Wu said and both looked at Nick when he sighed loudly. "What?" Wu asked.

"Did you take the witnesses statements?" Nick asked.

"Yes."

"Did CSU dust for fingerprints?"

"Right before you got here," Wu said, looking at Nick and then at Hank, insulted. "I also got a list of the items believed to stolen, CCTV video for during the time of the break-in, and ran the prints found through the database. Two sets belong to employees, and one set popped up a Mr. John Seton, with two B&E priors. Oswald is tracking him down, and he should be at the station for questioning in an hour or two."

"Oh," Nick said feeling a tad foolish. "Okay. Good." He said and then continued with his notes.

"What are you wearing?" Hank asked him, and Nick stabbed a period at the end of the sentence he was writing. He looked up to find Hank and Wu waiting on his answer.

"Nothing," Nick said, and Wu raised an eyebrow and opened his mouth. "This," Nick said quickly, hoping to stave off Wu's impending saucy comment, indicating the jeans and knit Henley he was wearing, "Or something similar." He stared in annoyance when Hank and Wu glanced at each other in disbelief.

"What?" he asked testily.

"Really?" Hank said.

"Adalind's letting you go like that?" Wu put in.

Nick rolled his eyes.

"Adalind's not "letting" me do anything. I can dress myself, and I'm not dressing up for this since I didn't even want to do this."

"Still," Wu said, and Hank nodded.

"Come on, buddy, the pride of Portland P.D. is on the line. Captain's wearing a suit."

"He always wears a suit," Nick retorted.

"Those guys from the Portland Fire Department are going to roast us. Last year, four of their guys got into the calendar."

"And don't forget the those EMT guys over in the Pearl," Hank said, and Wu nodded seriously.

"Have you both completely lost your minds?" Nick said.

"What about something like this?" Wu held up a navy blue suit with white pin striping. "Or this?" he held up a men's modern cut suit with a dark blue plaid fabric. "Actually I may like this for me," Wu said looking at it.

"Have at it. It's yours," Nick replied rudely, and then thanked god when his phone rang. His relief was short-lived when he realized Adalind was calling.

"Yes?" he answered harshly.

"Nick?"

"Yes," he replied, ignoring Hank's "Is that Adalind?" Wu perked up also.

"Oh good, I'm glad I caught you before I'm due in court. Hey, the dress rehearsal is Thursday at eleven, so I was thinking you and the guys should be at the civic center by ten at the latest to get checked in and ready."

"Dress rehearsal?" Nick said, and stared at his comrades in disbelief when Wu said loudly, "Adalind, you've got to do something about Nick's wardrobe choices."

"What's the problem?" she asked.

"Never mind," Nick said.

"He can't go dressed like he is," Hank added loudly.

"How are you dressed?" Adalind asked Nick, and Nick said, "Just forget it."

"He'll ruin our chances," Wu continued.

"I'm not sure I understand the problem," she said.

"I said forget it. I'm not wearing a suit for this stupid charity thing," Nick told the guys. "I swear," he said into the phone, "the next time I see you I'm going to do something so unspeakable to you it will make our past transgressions look like dalliances," he threatened.

"Don't tease," she said coyly and Nick turned away from his partners.

"I'm serious," he said.

"God I hope so, it's been forever since we've had some earth shatteringly good angry sex. Should I ask Monroe and Rosalee to take Kelly tonight?"

"Adalind," he said trying to ignore the stab of desire that hit low.

"Maybe you'll feel better once you get it all out of your system."

"Adalind."

"I know I will," she added seductively and he felt his face warm a bit at her tone. "Anyway, Thursday at 10 a.m." Adalind said in a normal voice. "Make sure you tell the guys, and don't be late!"

Nick closed his eyes and shook his head.

"And let me know where you land on Kelly and Rosalee and company," she added.

%%%%%%%%

He did feel better.

He hated when she was right about stuff like this. The sex had been fantastic, though, a little rougher and wilder than what they usually engaged in. More primal. She had encouraged it, and he secretly enjoyed that side of their relationship when it surfaced. He likened it to the Grimm/Hexenbiest within, but whatever it was, it had felt _good_.

He laid in bed, spent from the night, debating on getting up and taking a shower, or perhaps seeing if some early morning delight was on the menu, since he thought there might be enough life below the waistline to power through a nice romp before they had to go to work. Thought about Adalind last night, taking him into her mouth and riding him like a pogo stick, encouraging him to take her hard and fast, and thought he felt the stirrings of a very nice sexcapade in the works.

He rolled over onto his side, and stared at the object of many years of frustration and only recent years of desire.

He loved her.

There was no other explanation for how he felt, and no explanation for why he should feel it after everything that had happened, but he did. He supposed if it mattered that much to her he could stand on a stage for a few minutes and help her raise some money for her event. That was all she had asked him to do, and she had stuck by with only that. He ran a hand through her blond locks, messy and wild from their night together, and spied a smile on her face. He slid over a few more inches and kissed head, nose, cheeks and mouth, letting his hand roam, finding a home between her thighs.

"Again?" she asked with a contented sigh, and Nick knew he'd at least start his morning out nice.

%%%%%%%%

"You made me late for work," she said in an accusing voice when he picked up his phone nearly two hours later.

"I didn't do anything you weren't a willing party to," Nick replied, glad no one was around him. "Besides, you were the one who wanted another go in the shower. I tried to economize," he pointed out.

"God, I can barely walk," she said, "I told my assistant I pulled my back during Pilates," and Nick choked on his coffee. "I think I did pull my back."

"You okay?" he asked, hoping they hadn't gotten too carried away.

"Yeah," she assured. "I don't know why we don't do that more often."

Nick cleared his throat, and took another sip. "Kelly," he replied. "Did you get him off to daycare from Rosalee's?"

"Yes, I was late getting there, too."

"Again, you asked for it. Begged for it as I recall."

"Please, I didn't beg for anything. That was you."

Nick glanced around the department, and saw Hank heading his way.

"That's not how I remember it. Anyway, maybe that will teach you not to sign me up for any more charity functions."

"Maybe I'll sign you up for every charity function I can think of."

"You'd be bedridden after a week. Gotta go, I'll talk to you later," he said when Hank reached him.

"Why are you smiling?" Hank asked when he had hung up.

"No reason. We got a body at Himmler and thirty-seventh."

"And that makes you happy?"

"Sure. Why not?"

%%%%%%%%%%

Unbelievable.

He was actually debating on what to wear for this thing. He stared at his shirts hanging on the rack, trying to decide which one he should put on. Adalind had said he was fine to wear his normal work attire, but everything he pulled out to look at just seemed wrong.

He needed to shave, too, he thought as he ran a hand over his face.

They had missed the dress rehearsal, Hank, Wu and Nick, due to a double murder in the Heights, and Nick was feeling a little nervous on the fact that he now had no idea what to expect from this. He opened a drawer in the bureau and pulled out a thermal crew neck shirt. Then threw it back in and pulled open another drawer to fish out a sweater.

This was ridiculous, he thought. He tossed it back in and slammed the drawer shut.

He heard Kelly babble behind him, swiveled around to watch him navigate his way up the steps into his parents' bedroom and toddle over to come stand beside him. He bent his head back to look up at Nick and nearly lost his balance.

"Whoa," Nick said. "Careful, buddy," Kelly chattered something mostly unintelligible back and placed tiny hands on Nick's legs as he navigated around his father.

Maybe he would wear the sweater, he decided.

He opened the bottom drawer again, kneeling down to Kelly's height and fished it out, and then frowned when his son joined him and began emptying the contents of the drawer all over the floor.

"Kelly," he said with a sigh, and began collecting the articles and stuffing them back in. Kelly reached for the next drawer. "Oh no you don't," Nick said, placing his hand on it.

Kelly furrowed his brow and protested, and Nick sensed a battle of wills about to erupt. He was stubborn like his mother, Nick thought, and wondered if he could survive sixteen more years of this.

"Thank you," he said, picking his son up. "If I need help emptying a drawer I know who to call." He tilted Kelly suddenly to his side. He did it a few more times, each time acting like he was going to slip or let him drop, each time Nick held him firm in his hands, and Kelly laughed or squealed in delight. He set his son back down and Kelly moved away from the bureau, the allurement of the drawers at least temporarily abated.

"What's all the giggling I hear?" Adalind said, and Nick watched his son light up and run as fast as his little legs would carry him to his mother. She was wrapped in a towel, with another one on her head, having claimed the shower first for once in the morning. "What's all the stuff on the floor?" she asked, noticing the rest of the clothing Nick still needed to put away.

"Kelly," Nick replied.

"Ah."

She picked up her son and shifted Kelly to her hip and watched Nick finish stuffing the drawer back in and slam it shut. She raised her eyebrow when he said, "Argh!" and opened it up again. He had stuffed the sweater he had decided on back in with it.

"Problems?"

"No," he said, finally finding it, and pulling it back out. He looked at it again, debating on it, and asking her opinion on what to wear for this thing, before looking up at the rack of shirts again.

He heard Adalind sigh and glanced back to see Kelly toppling the towel on her head to the ground. Wet, dark blond strands fell all over her face, and she shook her head out to try and move them out her eyes.

"What's the matter?" she asked, watching him.

He twitched his lips. "Which of these do you think would be better for the charity event?" He held up the sweater and then pulled out a button up shirt.

"Whichever you like best," she said, and Nick frowned. Well that was helpful. "Wear whatever you want," she said, and grabbed at the towel on her body and set Kelly on the bed.

"You don't have a preference?" he persisted.

She held the towel tight and opened a drawer that contained her bra, underwear, and negligee, and he was reminded she had some nice expensive stuff that he would love to peel off of her. She pulled a fairly tame pair of undergarments out and glanced at Nick. Her eyes softened and Nick wondered if his discomfiture was that obvious.

"I love the green sweater on you, and the grey tee you usually wear underneath. This is my favorite button up on you," and she pulled out a navy one with matching pinstripes. This one's good, too," she said, pulling out another button up, a red one. Jeans, your boots. Gun. Badge," she leaned forward and kissed him, and Nick grabbed an end of the towel she was holding, and then the other one and used it to pull her tight to him, keeping her covered from Kelly's side of the room, and deliciously naked from Nick's.

"That sexy smile," she said a moment later. "Honestly, it will be all anyone can do to not commit a crime just to have you put handcuffs on them. Hmm, handcuffs," she said in a thoughtful voice and then smiled at him wickedly.

He yanked her back to him, and kissed her more thoroughly this time before Kelly's voice sing-songing their names pulled him back to reality. He gave her back the ends of the towel and scooped up the sweater and tee, and a pair of black jeans and headed to the shower, scooping up his son also in a football carry as he passed by so his mother could get dressed in peace. He placed Kelly in his baby bouncy chair, and started gathering his son's breakfast, handing it off to Adalind before disappearing into the bathroom.

%%%%%%%%

Okay there were a lot of people at this thing, Nick thought. Far more than he expected. He wondered if anyone was left to run any of Portland's businesses or serve their civic duties. He didn't see Adalind anywhere, but he did spot Rosalee and Monroe across the room. Hank, Wu, the Captain and Nick had ridden over from the station together, and the captain was in the process of signing in. Nick stood behind Hank and Wu, each of whom were carrying a garment bag, and he wondered once again if he shouldn't have dressed up for it.

"Nick! Nick Burkhardt?" And Nick turned to the voice and suppressed the urge to cringe outwardly when he realized it belonged to Valencia Stewardson.

"Valencia," she said, as though he didn't recognize her, and he summoned a smile and held out his hand for her to shake. "How are you detective?"

"Good," he replied. "Have you seen Adalind?"

"Not for a while," she replied dismissively. "And are these all your fellow officers from the precinct where you work?" She looked around Nick at Hank, Wu, and the captain who had now joined them. Nick dutifully made the introductions. He noticed Valencia's eyes lingered on Renard briefly, but everyone else she gave barely a once over.

"Excellent!" she exclaimed. "Well, you'll want to head backstage and get ready," she said, ushering them towards a cordoned off area. "You should be dressed and ready to go fifteen minutes prior to start. She glanced at each gentleman's bag and then at Nick who was empty handed. He saw her brow wrinkle.

"Does Adalind have your clothes?" she asked.

"No," Nick said, and grinned as he passed Valencia. He pulled his phone out of his pocket and sent a text to Adalind. _Save me_.

They proceeded to a backstage area that was bustling with activity. Nick saw the firemen from fire station 15; The EMTs from the Pearl, some officers he recognized from state highway patrol. He followed the guys to the dressing room when he felt his phone buzz in his pocket.

 _Isn't that my line? I take it you're here._

 _Yes, I have arrived as indicated in your carefully and annoyingly annotated email._

 _Good. Give me five._

Nick stuffed his phone in his coat pocket and looked up attentively when Valencia began pointing out various things backstage. Hank and Wu disappeared in one of the fitting rooms she indicated and the captain and Nick took their seats on the bench along the wall, the captain apparently already wearing the suit he was going to appear in on stage.

A few minutes later, Adalind showed up, dressed in a royal blue off the shoulder cocktail dress and four-inch platform heels. The dress flared a little around her knees, and the fabric was light and sheer in the skirt. She smiled at Nick and offered a head nod to Renard who glanced between them when Nick stood.

"Wow," Nick said, unable to help himself. She looked very beautiful, put-together and high class. Nick felt a little self-conscious standing next to her in jeans and a sweater, and he was reminded how different they both were despite similar childhoods. She had brought herself up to run in circles like this most of her adult life and was comfortable with the high-class, high-powered elite of society. He had always been blue-collar, an orphaned child at twelve who had little experience or desire to be with the high class other than what his field work as a police officer and detective had brought him.

She smiled again, a little self-consciously, and bounced lightly on her toes to place a peck on his cheek. "The guys getting ready?" she asked Nick and Renard, and Renard nodded.

"Should be out in a few minutes," he said, and Adalind nodded. She slipped her arm through Nick's and pulled him over to the side, a dozen or so yards away from Renard. Nick looked at her questioningly.

"You look very nice," she said, looking him over, a touch of heat in her expression as her eyes roamed over him, and Nick thought of her the other night and warmed a little himself.

"Everybody's dressed up. You sure this is okay?" he asked.

"Everybody is not dressed up. The firemen are in their gear, the EMTs are in their uniform, you'll be fine."

"Nick! Adalind!" and they both turned to where Monroe and Rosalee were heading their way. Adalind brightened when she saw her friend.

"Rosalee! You made it," she said, as Rosalee exclaimed "Oh my god, look at you! That dress!"

Monroe raised his eyebrows over Rosalee's head and Nick raised his.

"And Nick! You look great," Rosalee said smiling at him, and Nick accepted the compliment with a nod of thanks.

"How'd you get back here?" he asked Monroe, remembering the surprisingly good security, and then saw Valencia heading their way with a determined look.

"Did you sneak in?" he asked as he watched Valencia narrow her eyes on Rosalee.

"Maybe," Monroe said, sensing something in Nick's question. "Bud's holding our seats." He turned to look at what held Nick's attention.

"Incoming," Nick muttered, and Adalind flicked her attention to Nick and then Valencia who said to Rosalee, "Excuse me! You can't be back here."

"It's okay," Adalind said, "they're with me," and Valencia gave her a poisoned expression. She glanced at Monroe who offered a nervous, friendly smile, Rosalee who gave her a smirk, and then Nick who offered nothing but a stony expression and back to Adalind.

"Oh," Valencia sniffed. "Are these friends of yours?"

"Yes, this is Monroe and Rosalee," Adalind introduced them, and Valencia offered a brittle smile.

"Pleasure to meet you," she said with cool politeness, and Monroe tipped his head in reply. She glanced at Monroe and Rosalee, taking in their clothes, and glanced at Nick, before offering another fake smile.

"Do you work with Nick?" she asked, and Nick wondered at the assumption. Granted, if he didn't know how much Adalind truly enjoyed Rosalee's company, seemed to enjoy Monroe's too (or at least put up with it because of Rosalee and Nick), then he would wonder too at Adalind's association with them. Probably had wondered, if he was being honest. Obviously Valencia wondered, and assumed her association with Monroe and Rosalee was due to him. Well, it kind of was, he admitted, so maybe he couldn't fault her there.

"We, uh, we uh consult with him sometimes on cases," Monroe said.

"Oh? What is it you do exactly?" Valencia asked looking at Rosalee again, eyes lingering on her flannel shirt and Carrhart type coat she was wearing.

"Oh," Monroe said, "Well," he looked at Nick for help, and Nick shook his head slightly. "It's really kind of boring," Monroe said, and Nick nodded apologetically.

"You help him solve murders, don't you?" Valencia said, and Nick was sure she was thinking of every dateline murder mystery episode she had ever seen.

"Yeah, yeah," Monroe said, putting his hands in his pockets. "I'm sort of like a private detective, I guess."

Valencia's brow crinkled at this, but they were saved from further explanation by Hank.

"What do you think?"

Nick turned to Hank who was holding his arms up.

"Nice!" Nick said, smiling. Hank was dressed in a burgundy suit, complete with waistcoat, and a black silk shirt and tie.

"Very nice, Hank," Adalind said.

"You look very handsome," Rosalee said.

"Hey now," Monroe teased.

"And," Hank said, and slapped a matching fedora on his head. "Just go ahead and try to resist me," he boasted.

"Not going to be a problem, my friend," Wu said, and everyone swiveled their heads to look at him as he approached. He was wearing the plaid suit from the menswear shop, and actually didn't look near as ridiculous as Nick would have imagined.

"Wow, Wu, love the suit," Rosalee said, and Adalind nodded.

"Where did you find it?"

"Oh, this place downtown during an investigation," Wu said.

"You mean at a crime scene?" Monroe asked, raising his eyebrows.

"Yeah?" Wu said in a tone that meant he wasn't sure what he was implying with that question. "What? You think crime only happens 9-5?"

Nick noticed the captain join them on the periphery. "What about you? Don't you have to get changed?" Valencia asked Nick.

Nick shook his head. "What you see is what you get," Nick replied standing next to Adalind who was leaning against a table.

"So just the jeans and sweater," Monroe said and Nick gave him a look.

"Yes, just the jeans and sweater," Nick said somewhat testily.

"It's good," Monroe said quickly. "It works for you," and Nick crossed his arms over his chest and leaned against the table with Adalind.

"Thanks," he said dryly.

"It does," Adalind assured, "and the fewer layers I have to fumble off him later the better," Adalind said, and Rosalee bit down a laugh, but not a smile, and Valencia looked at him, considering. Nick felt his face flush a little and flashed his eyes at Adalind in warning.

"I could have gone my whole life without hearing that," Hank muttered.

"Great, now I'm going to have that picture in my head," Monroe moaned.

Nick smiled tightly and elbowed Adalind as subtly as possible. She grinned unrepentantly.

"Ahem," and Nick colored even more when he realized it was the captain clearing his throat. "I think they're ready for us," he said, and proceeded to follow a woman with a headset and a clipboard. Valencia excused herself. Hank and Wu bid Monroe and Rosalee goodbye with a nod, and followed.

"Good luck guys," Rosalee said, and gave Nick a quick kiss on his cheek. "We'll be in the audience rooting for you."

"But not bidding for you," Monroe said.

"That hurts. After all our years of friendship?"

"Minimum bid is a thousand dollars."

"Seriously?" Nick asked, looking at Adalind for confirmation. She shrugged and nodded.

"It's for charity, remember?"

"Right."

"Knock 'em dead…or you know, whatever you do at one of these things," Monroe said and they headed off for the audience.

Nick looked around and spied Hank looking back at him from a hundred yards away. He jerked his head a couple of times and Nick nodded.

"I better go," Nick said, and Adalind straightened and nodded. She ran her hands down his chest, smoothing down his sweater. "Kinda wishing maybe I wore a suit," Nick admitted, "especially for a thousand bucks. 'Fraid you're not going to raise much out of me."

"I'm sure I could raise something out of you," she said suggestively, and Nick gave her another look, and she smiled cheekily.

"And I do have a suit, you know, just in case," Adalind said nonchalantly. Nick looked at her for a moment.

"Of course you do," he said, thinking of the daycare incident.

"Just saying, if you're having second thoughts."

"I have like two minutes," Nick said, glancing at Hank again who held up his watch and pointed at it.

"You have like one minute," she said and slipped her arms around his waist and looked up at him, resting her chin against his chest. He reciprocated.

"What do you think?" he said.

"I think you're going to be hot whether you're in jeans or Hugo Boss."

"I'm beginning to think you're biased."

"Maybe. Doesn't mean I'm wrong."

"Hmm."

He leaned down and placed a kiss on the corner of her mouth.

"It's your decision," she said, and slid her hands down into his back jeans pockets.

%%%%%%%%

"I just want you to know," Nick said to Adalind when his name was called, "I'm doing this for you."

"Don't worry, you'll be well rewarded," she promised.

"I better be," he muttered and then took a deep breath.

"You're sure about this," he said, indicating his attire.

"Ohhhh yeah," she said looking him over.

"Okay," he said, nodding, mostly to himself, and grabbed the rail to climb the stairs to the stage. They were still out of sight of the audience. Nick and the captain had switched their order, buying him some time, going from first to last.

"Wait!" and he lurched to a stop, surprise on his face.

"What?"

"I forgot this," she said, and kissed him long and deep.

"Okay," he said, a bit stupidly when she released him.

"For luck," She explained.

"Right," he said, and then took the stage.

%%%%%%%%

"Ladies and gentlemen, this is Detective Nick Burkhardt also with the Portland P.D. How about a nice round of applause?"

Nick squinted in the spotlight before he was finally able to make out the audience, who clapped dutifully. He heard a couple of wolf whistles and then noticed Rosalee, Monroe and Bud in the third row of the audience. Bud smiled encouragingly, Monroe sympathetically, and Rosalee a combination of the two.

 _Good Lord,_ he thought. _I can't believe I agreed to this._ He clasped his hands behind him and stood at ease, a slightly more relaxed version than how he had been taught at the police academy. He pasted on a smile and listened to the announcer read off some stats from her information cards and wondered what information was on them from the questionnaire Adalind had filled out. Apparently the answer to that would have been revealed during the dress rehearsal, but they had all missed that. He hoped Adalind wasn't her usual unfiltered self when she answered those.

"Nick has served with the Portland P.D. For thirteen years, and solved over 150 cases with his partner, who you met just moments ago, Hank. He has been recognized for distinguished service twice, and was one of the youngest to make detective in Portland P.D. history." _Blah, blah, blah,_ Nick thought. Adalind must have asked Renard about his service record, or maybe Renard had offered up the basics. It didn't seem like it had been thirteen years ago that he had first joined the police force. He had been taking some courses at a community college when he first got interested, mostly at Aunt Marie's behest. A recruiter had been in the quad one day and Nick had started talking to him, recalled his parents' accident and the officer who had come to tell his Aunt Marie that his mom and dad and her sister had died. He had transferred to a university to finish out his last two years of schooling, gotten a degree in criminal justice and enrolled in the police academy a week after graduation.

He had met Juliette almost three years later, when she was a witness to a traffic accident and he was the patrol officer assigned to take her statement, and they had struck up a conversation and then never stopped. Until she turned into a hexenbiest and tried to kill all their friends and his mom, that is. He had had little to say to her after that, and then it didn't matter anyway. She had "died" and resurrected herself as Eve, and Nick had been thrust into fatherhood and parenting a child with a woman he previously would only put his hands on if it meant he was choking her to death.

Far cry from the last year and a half, where it had become increasingly difficult to keep his hands _off_ for far more enjoyable reasons.

He realized he had tuned out and tuned back in to his introduction, and then realized he hadn't missed anything important anyway. She was going over the details of the suit he was wearing, one that probably cost Adalind more than what he made in a month, but he had taken it and worn it without complaint, glad at least he didn't look like an eyesore next to the rest of his coworkers. It was similar in style and fit to the one he wore to Monroe's wedding, a charcoal black with slim fit pants and jacket, and a skinny tie. He had his badge on one hip and he had left his gun with Adalind—who hadn't wanted to hold onto it while he went on stage (" _where am_ I _supposed to put it? It doesn't go with this dress")_.

"Ladies, Detective Burkhardt is 5'11" of smolderingly dark handsomeness."

 _Kill me now,_ Nick thought, feeling his smile freeze.

"He lists family, friends, and quiet nights in front of the fire as the things he loves most."

' _Quiet nights in front of the fire?'_ It was all he could do to not turn his head to where Adalind was standing behind him, out of sight of the audience, back stage. _We don't even have a fireplace,_ he thought.

"Among his many talents, he's a devoted father, determined focus upon any task set before him, _very_ skilled with his hands, so he's knows how to handle his weapon," the woman with the microphone added coyly and he heard the crowd murmur noisily. Nick felt his cheeks warm a little. Beside him he thought he heard Hank snort.

"And with that, ladies and gentlemen, who's going to start with the first bid?"

 _I'm going to kill her,_ he thought.

%%%%%%%%

"What? I can't very well say you're a Grimm and a highly skilled one and that you can kill anyone with anything. Skilled with your hands and knows how to handle weapons says all that. And besides, you _are_ skilled with your hands. Just be glad I didn't mention how skilled you are with your tongue."

Nick slipped his tie from the knot with a jerk and gave her a look. She handed him back his gun holster in exchange and he slipped it onto his belt in its usual spot. Thankfully they were by themselves for the moment, Hank and Wu talking with Rosalee, Monroe, and Bud, and the captain was on his cell phone.

She clapped her hands excitedly and smiled. "Besides it had the desired effect."

"I feel like a piece of meat," Nick said.

"Maybe I should have mentioned how good you are with you tongue," she said. "We probably could have raised twice as much."

"Quiet nights in front of the fire?" Nick said, going back to some of the comments.

"I'm sure if we had one you would enjoy it immensely," Adalind replied. "Okay, maybe I hedged a little on that one. Do you know how hard it was to fill that thing out?"

"I'm sure it didn't require as much effort as you're implying."

"I spent two days on that thing," she retorted. " _How would Nick answer, what would appeal to the audience and work best to raise some money?_ What can I put down that won't get me in trouble with you?"

"Thank god it's over," Nick sighed.

"Almost," Adalind agreed and Nick look at her sharply.

"Almost?" he asked with alarm. "I stood on the stage and smiled, as per your direction. What do you mean 'almost'?"

"Well the top twelve still have to have their pictures taken for the calendar, and then the calendar goes on sale. I mean, there's not been the official tally, but I think you were number 5, at least."

"What?!"

"I know. You're were definitely top three in my book," she said. "Maybe you should have worn your gun, I mean it really completes the whole picture."

"Oh my god, Adalind!" A Calendar?

"What, that firefighter for the fifteenth was _hot._ Surely even you could see that," she replied, a hint of a teasing smile on her face. Nick placed his hands on his hips and glared at her.

"Nick!" and Nick turned to Wu, Hank and the Captain. "We're getting ready to head back to the precinct. You coming?" Hank asked.

"Be there in a minute," Nick nodded.

"Great job guys," Adalind said. "Thanks for all your help, we raised a lot of money for a good cause."

"Yeah, sure, no problem," Hank said.

"It was surprisingly a lot of fun," Wu added. "Wish I could have garnered as much as _some_ ," Wu said pointedly. "Maybe I'm just not as skilled with my hands, though," Wu added, and the captain bit down a smile while Hank snickered. Nick looked up at the ceiling. He twisted his lips and nodded, and glared at Adalind.

"Thanks, guys," Nick said, and Wu grinned.

"What are friends for?" Hank replied, patting him on the shoulder before chuckling. "We'll meet you at the car," he said as they moved away.

"I expect to be well compensated for this," Nick said, when he turned back to Adalind. She rolled her eyes but smiled.

"I'm sure we can work out something that we both find mutually satisfying."

"Ohhh, no. We're doing everything I like first," Nick said. "You might want to wear something you don't care about. That's the kind of mood I'm in."

She grinned, and leaned in close to play with the buttons on his shirt. She looked up into his eyes, her eyes big and blue and seductive. She toyed with his shirt collar and then slipped her arms around his neck. He tried to remain unmoved, hold onto his anger, but he had always like her close and the way she was looking at him wasn't helping his resolve. Problem was he wasn't really that mad anyway and she knew it. He slipped his hands around her waist and pulled her closer, closing the distance, and glanced around him. No one was paying them much attention yet, and Nick shifted them slightly so that his back was to the room a little and then bent his head to kiss her. Her mouth opened under him and he gripped her tighter.

"You're lucky I love you," he said when they parted, trying to maintain his composure. "I might be persuaded to go easy on you tonight," he added.

"God, I hope not," she replied. "Maybe now's the time to let you know you'll be required to do interviews, too."

He moved back, annoyed. "Interviews? You never said anything about interviews. I am not doing any interviews for this," he added.

She bit down a smile.

"I guess we'll see won't we?" she replied and smiled dangerously when he gave her a dark look. "I can't wait 'til tonight," she added, using his tie to loop it back around his neck and pull him towards her again. She gave him another hot, open mouthed kiss. "The guys are waiting. I'll see you later," she said when she released him, sashaying away from him, hips swaying alluringly with each step.

"You might want to call in sick tomorrow," Nick called and she stopped and looked back at him questioningly. "You'll probably need the extra recovery time," he said in a low voice when he passed her by.

%%%%%%%%

THE END.

Well, what did you think?


End file.
